VB's Beauty Tip of the Week: BEAUTY C.R.E.A.M. - How to Stretch your Beauty Dolla Dolla Bills - Part III: Pump it Up – How to be a Shower Gel Savior

Most of us have very hectic lifestyles, so the one thing that is my daily therapy, my own personal 20 minute sanctuary, is my shower time. When I’m in the shower, it’s one of the few moments in my life where I can relax and peacefully be alone with myself and my thoughts. It is a time I set aside everyday in which I pamper myself, and where I can be aware and appreciate and really celebrate the physical aspect of being a woman.

I find my time in the shower to be pretty self-indulgent. It’s very rare for me to use bar soap on my body, since shower gel is one of my guilty pleasures, and can be quite a decadent habit in view of the fact that there is an entire universe of shower gels out there varying in fragrance, consistency, color, concentration, price, formulation, etc., and as we find out in next week’s Top Shower Gel Picks. So this week, I’m going to show you how to make your money stretch in the shower by stretching your shower gel.

What to buy: Foaming cleanser product in a “pump” type of container like

Bath and Bodyworks Antibacterial Gentle Foaming Hand Soap, $5 each or 3 for $10 or


Dawn Direct Foam Dishwashing Foam Antibacterial Hand Soap, $3.59

Instructions: When you are finished with the original product in the “pump” type of container, rinse it out thoroughly. Fill 1/5 of the container with your choice shower gel, then fill with water. Stir the shower gel/water combination with a chopstick or butter knife (tend to be narrow containers), screw on the top, then give it a final shake to combine the mixture. A full container of shower gel prepared this way will yield about two weeks worth of daily usage.

Enjoy and stay posted for more beauty tips and picks to come next week!!

VB's Beauty Picks of the Week: BEAUTY C.R.E.A.M. - How to Stretch your Beauty Dolla Dolla Bills Y’all - Part II: Drug Store Beauty Booty

As a lover of drug stores, I frequent their cosmetic departments in search of old and new praise worthy beauty products. Target, Wal-Mart, Walgreen’s, Longs – I don’t discriminate. So this week’s picks is all about my favorite drug store beauty finds, the best part is that these are all under $10.

1. Revlon’s Super Lustrous Lipstick – Wild Orchid #457

DESCRIPTION: During the day, I’m very much a no-nonsense lipgloss kind of girl. But the night is another story. Here is an inexpensive highly accessible lipstick pick to give you a sexy pout straight outta a Nagel print.

WHY I LIKE IT: Wild orchid is a super hot color – hell, it’s a super hot name. Anyhow, #457 makes a statement. It’s a very punchy color that packs a lot of pizzazz, giving instant evening high octane sex appeal to any outfit, and looks good on any skin color. I should say, all that is a pretty good deal for $7.99!

REVIEW:
Price: $7.99 for .15 oz. tube
Accessibility: Excellent (any drug store)
Value: Excellent!

2. Neutrogena Oil Free Eye Make-up Remover

DESCRIPTION: This eye makeup remover is amazing! It’s oil free, and yet has the consistency of an oil based salad dressing, basically the same concept as Lancome’s Bi-Facil eye make up remover, which I use to be a fan of, until Neutrogena made their new and improved version, at a fraction of the cost. (Bi-Facil is $24 per a 4.2 oz. bottle.)

WHY I LIKE IT: It’s extremely gentle and completely removes any traces of eye makeup, without leaving a greasy film, as some other eye makeup removers do. You can follow with your regular facial cleansing routine or just wipe away the excess. It’s incredible product and an excellent value as far as I’m concerned.

REVIEW:
Price: $6 for 3.8 oz.
Accessibility: Excellent (any drug store)
Value: Excellent!



3. Palmer’s Cocoa Butter with Vitamin E

DESCRIPTION: I have very dry skin, and a few years ago at the Kiehl’s counter, I was talked into purchasing one of their leave-on masques/creams that has since been discontinued, for the dry patches around the edges of my nose and lips. After a while, this product was causing breakouts in areas that hadn’t been prone to them since my late adolescence. Once again, on a hunch and freaked out, I decided to pick up a jar of cocoa butter to see if it could provide enough moisture to these areas without causing pimples. My hunch was right and I never went back to that horrible product reminiscent of my pre-teen skin.

WHY I LIKE IT: This product provides extra moisture in places that need it and does not clog pores, and can be used anywhere on the body! Also, it is inexpensive and an awesome value since the jar will probably last you three years. Smells delicious too!

REVIEW:
Price: $5.50 for 3.5 oz.
Accessibility: Excellent (any drug store)
Value: Excellent!


Enjoy and stay posted for more beauty tips and picks to come next week!!

VB's Beauty Tip of the Week: BEAUTY C.R.E.A.M. - How to Stretch your Beauty Dolla Dolla Bills Y’all - Part I

Most product containers still have 10% -15% of product left in its corners, nooks, and crannies when they appear to be empty. I’ve always thought wasting product is plain silly cause you pay for it, ounce by ounce, just as you would for gold or caviar. I figure if it’s a product you are loyal to and continually use, you might as well get your money’s worth and use it ALL, since there is no point in wasting a good thing. This week’s beauty tip is the first in a series of tips on how to make your beauty dollars stretch. So today I’m gonna show you an easy way to access this last bit of product.

Instructions: With scissors or a very sharp knife (for thicker plastic), cut through the middle of the product’s container. Then tuck one end of the container, by grabbing and sort of pinching and folding it into the other side of where the incision was made. Also, depending ont he shape of the container and the amount of product left in it, you may have to cut it down, little by little everyday.

Before:


After:


*You may want to make sure you have cabinet space for these cut containers cause they are somewhat of an eyesore lying around on a countertop.

Enjoy and stay posted for more beauty tips and picks to come next week!!

VB's Beauty Picks of the Week – Preppin’ Skool for Covering Your Bases - My Favorite Beauty Base Products

When it comes to beauty, my philosophy is to envision oneself as a piece of art, and I mean literally. I like to think of my face, body, skin, hair and nails as a blank canvas with infinite possibilities, waiting to be enriched and embellished by a multitude of layered products working together in a harmonious ecosystem called: me. So the focus of this week’s beauty blog is my favorite beauty prep products that I would never dream of changing, that I love just the way they are.


1. DHC Velvet Skin Coat

DESCRIPTION: A very lightweight cream that fills in and patches dermal flaws. Just like when you prep holes in a wall with spackle for a new coat of paint, this product will
noticeably lessen the appearance of your pores, and is great for filling in fine lines and acne scars too. It seems non-comdogenic – or non pore clogging, in my opinion, and a little goes a long way, since you only need to use an amount equivalent to the size of a petite pea or a small bead.

WHY I LIKE IT: This product is simply amazing. Skin feels smoother, make-up glides right over it, and somehow it brightens your entire complexion making your pores virtually disappear, and invisible pores equals a step closer to perfect skin in my opinion.

REVIEW
Price: $20 for .52 oz. – Sometimes goes on sale
Accessibility: Fair (DHC website – dhc.com or phone order – 1-800-342- 2273)
Value: Great! – *You get 4 free samples of your choice each time you order, there is a “loyalty” discount for future orders, and you get a discount if you refer someone , and they decide to purchase.



2. Make up Forever Corrective Make Up Base # 5 (Blue)

DESCRIPTION: This product is great for anyone who feels their complexion may be a tad bit sallow. It’s in a cream foundation form, which is actually very lightweight and sheer, yet it gives enough pigmented coverage to help visually boost any sallow complexion.

WHY I LIKE IT: I was born jaundiced, so I believe this is why I am a naturally sallow girl. I don’t enjoy having the sick and washed out look, so I fake a healthy complexion by leveling out the yellow tones in my skin by using a blue base. When I’m made up, I’m told my complexion looks very “healthy”, which makes me very happy cause I know the product has succeeded, and I’m the only one, (beside y’all now), knowing it’s the #5 at work, and not my genetic make-up. Sike your mind is right with this one! And I do love me a good fake!!!

REVIEW:
Price: $24 for 1 oz.
Accessibility: Good (Sephora, Nordstrom)
Value: Fair





3. OPI Designer Series Base & Top Coats

DESCRIPTION: Diamond dust is touted as the key ingredient that makes these two OPI nail polishes so effective. Whatever the case, all I know is that these two products work really super well together. OPI is not cheap, but what I find in nail polishes is that its quality, durability, and level of pigmentation directly correlate to its price point. With nail polish, you really get what you pay for.

WHY I LIKE IT: The base coat dries extremely fast, and really adheres the color to the nailbed, and helps prevent nail yellowing from dark polish. The top coat protects and prolongs my manicures and pedicures, which in the long run means more time for me in between these beauty routines. I figure buying one of these nail polishes is like buying a drink and a half at a bar, except with its use my manicures last a week longer, which is much more rewarding, and actually a better value than the buzz I get from a drink and half. So be it.

REVIEW:
Price: $12.50 ea. For .5 oz.
Accessibility: Fair (Your local beauty supply store, Amazon.com, Ebay.com)
Value: Fair

Enjoy and stay posted for more beauty tips and picks to come next week!!